A worthy compendium that say much to the spiritual language of the Aztec. The Way of the Aztec is now been recovered to such an extent that it can be characterized in literature.
Much said in the past is irrelevant. They operated an antique empire as well as any. Public sacrifice of war captives is unusual only in that they brought them home for public consumption not unlike the Romans.
I wonder if the Romans influenced this display. I am certain communication was possible
.
10 Aztec Symbols Explained
| March 20, 2018 | Ancient Symbols, Featured Stories, News
The Aztecs saw
these symbols in daily life and all around them, in nature, on the
walls of their temples, in jewelry, in their language, writing and
religion.
1. Blood – The Sun Needed New Power
The Aztecs of ancient Mexico believed that human blood was necessary
to strengthen the sun. During its nighttime wandering through the dark
underworld, the sun was so weak that it needed new powers. It was
important, if cosmic order was to be maintained. Human blood was the
most powerful means to ‘help’ the sun to recover from its weakness. This
belief explains the Aztec deep-rooted tradition of very frequent
sacrifices of prisoners, whom the Aztecs forced to die. Blood linked
people with the gods already at birth.
2. Atlatl (Spear Thrower) – Symbol Of Warfare And Magical Power
Generally, in the Aztec world, fine weapons were symbols of power and
religious war. In the Nahuatl language of the Aztecs, the spear thrower
was called ‘atlatl’ and was a symbol of warfare and magical
power. Important Aztec gods were depicted holding ‘atlatl’, decorated
with snake (or serpent) designs or feathers (symbolizing a bird of
prey).
The ‘atlatl’ in a hand of the Aztec warrior disguised as Death, was used in a sacrifice of a captive tied to a scaffold.
3. Jaguar – Symbol Of The Aztec Elite Warriors
A jaguar, a fierce, brave hunter in ancient Mexico was the symbol of
the Aztec elite warriors, the “Jaguars” as a jaguar was the largest
beast of prey.3
It was a cult and shamanic animal figure associated with sacrificial
ceremonies and offerings to the jaguar god and the Aztec god of
warriors. Tezcatlipoca god (“Smoking Mirror”, in Nahuatl) is depicted as
a jaguar with an eagle at his side and the Aztec Emperor had a throne
of eagle feathers and jaguar skin.
The jaguar was also symbol of the 14th of the 20 day-signs
of the Aztec calendar and was even aligned with the eagle and called
the “jaguar of the skies.” Gods and kings wore the skins and feathers of
sacred animals as status symbols.
4. Eagle – Symbol Of Power
“Quauhtli” (eagle) is the 15th of the 20 days of the Aztec calendar, a
symbol expressing warlike qualities in those born under this sign, but
the sign also means a tendency to plunder and steal. Eagle, a symbol of
power was also included in insignia of the Aztec capital Tenochtitlan.
Today, the eagle statue in Mexico City still commemorates the foundation
of Tenochtitlán but, the eagle has not a bird in its claw.
In the Aztec Empire, the eagle symbolized one of the two elite
warrior groups (“eagles”) dedicated to the sun. The sun’s journey from
night to day was a representation of an eagle’s flight.
As the eagle rises to swoop down on its prey, so does the sun; it
rises and then swoops down and finally disappear. The eagle symbolized
the largest bird, which was fearless, powerful and brave and so were the
bravest men. This bird was a symbol of warriors.
5. Chocolate – Sacred Symbol Of Nobility
Chocolate was considered an aphrodisiac and symbolizes sensuality and
decadence. It was the drink of the elite. For the Aztecs and the Mayan
people, it was holy. The Aztecs used cocoa beans as a means of payment
and drinking chocolate was reserved for the elite. It was symbol of
political and social symbol for the empire. It was symbol of nobility
and economic symbol in society. Drinking of chocolate signified ones
wealth and status.
Even today, chocolate is seen as a luxury product.
6. Dog – Guided To The Afterlife
In the 20-day calendar of the ancient civilizations of Central America the dog (in Aztec, itzcuintli)
is the 10th day sign. The dogs in ancient Mexico, were buried along
with the dead as sacrifices to them and as guides for the afterlife
because they could take the dead across the “ninefold river” to the
underworld.
Boys born under the sign of the dog were believed to be predestined
to rule and to distribute prized gifts. The god Xolotl (“twin”),
depicted as a dog-headed man, was associated with the sunset and would
guard the Sun as it traveled through the underworld every night.
7. Owl – A Bringer Of Death
The Aztecs feared the owl and believed it was a bringer of death. It
symbolized a demonic night creature represented dark shamanic forces. It
appeared suddenly in the darkness and was always an evil omen.
Even today, this bird is believed to be a bad omen. Interestingly, in
the pre-Aztec civilization of ancient Mexico (Teotihuacan), the owl was
the sacred animal of the rain-god. Tlacolotl, the horned owl was a
representation of the deepest evil to the Aztecs. Spanish friar
Bernardino de Sahagun wrote that among omens and warning signs provided
by birds and the owls were birds, which were considered messengers of
the gods of death Mictlantecuhtli and Mictlantecuhuatl, often portrayed
with owls.
These two feared gods called for people who were destined to live in
their underground world, Mictlan. If an owl was heard above an Aztec
home or from a nearby tree, it was a warning sign that someone would die
soon or even lives of others would be endangered.
8. Monkey – Symbol Of The Calendar
The ape is a calendar symbol in ancient Mexican cultures also,
lending its name (in Aztec Ozomatii, in Mayan Ba’tz) to the 11th day of
the month. The ape was a god of dance, celebration and those born under
this sign were expected to become jugglers, dancers, pranksters, or
singers.
An ancient myth of periodic “ends of the world” (or “the second era
or “sun,”) says that everything ended by devastating tornadoes, and the
humans of this era were transformed into apes. In the Aztec Sun Stone
carved in 1478, the north is a warrior’s headdress symbolizing the
military power of the aztecs (Mexica) and their developing empire. The
south is a monkey and represents a part of the previous suns (ages) according to the myth of creation.
9. Butterfly – Symbol Of Transformation
In ancient Mexico the butterfly (in Aztec papalotl, suggestive of the Latin papilio) was one of the attributes of Xochipilli, the god of vegetation, but also symbolized flickering firelight and was associated with the Sun. The Aztecs believed that the last breath of a dying person took the form of a butterfly. As the lifecycle of the butterfly (egg, larva, pupa and imago (adult) can be clearly observed, the Aztecs, therefore, gave this insect symbolic meaning of transformation.
Itzpapalotl (‘Obsidian Butterfly’ or ‘Clawed Butterfly’), a butterfly
goddess surrounded by stone knives (so-called ‘itzli’), was a symbol of
the souls of women who had died in childbirth. The souls of enemy
warriors killed on the battlefield were like butterflies fluttering
among flowers. The insect’s fluttering of wings (like the flickering of a
flame) was linked to fire and the sun.
10. Maize – A Gift From God Quetzalcoatl
The Aztecs say the god Quetzalcoatl gave maize to humans. For over
5000 years maize has been one of the most important foods for people
living in Mexico including the Aztecs. Maize was sacred to the Aztecs,
who also worshiped the God of Maize. Maize was crucial to the Aztecs’
survival. Therefore, they celebrated different stages in the plant’s
life with festivals and offerings. They gave these stages names and
created images of them in stone and in paintings.
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Tlaloc, god of rain who was important for agriculture, was depicted with the ears of corn.
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